Aims: The present study investigated the effect of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)(B) receptor agonists, baclofen and CGP 44532, on the acquisition of alcohol drinking behaviour in selectively bred Sardinian alcohol-preferring (sP) rats.
Methods: Baclofen [0, 1 and 3 mg/kg, intraperitoneally (i.p.)] and CGP 44532 (0, 0.1, 0.3 and 1 mg/kg, i.p.) were administered immediately before alcohol presentation to alcohol-naive sP rats. Alcohol was offered under the two-bottle free-choice regimen with unlimited access for 24 h/day. Drug treatment was repeated once daily for 10 consecutive days.
Results: Baclofen and CGP 44532, dose-dependently and with comparable efficacy, suppressed alcohol intake; compensatory increases in water intake left total fluid intakes virtually unchanged.
Conclusions: These results demonstrate that baclofen and CGP 44532 prevent the acquisition of alcohol drinking behaviour in sP rats, and suggest the involvement of the GABA(B) receptor in the mechanisms underlying the disclosure and experience of the reinforcing properties of alcohol in this rat line.